No Kitchen, No Internet, No Computer

by HEAB on June 16, 2010

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Oh my gosh, what a day. We have no water in our kitchen, and our gas was shut off for the installation of our new countertops yesterday. I’m hoping it gets turned back on later today. Until then, it’s cold showers and no cooking. Our Internet has been down for the past 24 hours, and so I went to a coffee shop to blog and catch up on email. Ran into a friend, friend’s coffee ended up all over the table and my Mac, ruining my computer. My friend felt so bad, and I felt so bad for her – it’s the last thing either of needed today, but things happen. I’ve got a new computer with my name on it at the Apple store, and they’re trying to rescue some of my old data. Not sure if that’s possible as the hard drive was covered in vanilla latte, but I’m hopeful. Anyway, I’m now at my brother’s place borrowing his computer and just trying to breathe.

So, what does a food blogger with no kitchen eat?

I like to call this meal "Every Pregnant Woman's Dream"

For yesterday’s lunch, I used our toaster oven to cook myself up an all beef hot dog in a whole wheat bun with melted goat cheese and Bald Eagle Sauce (mustard and pickle relish all in one) with a side of sauerkraut.

Next up, we have today’s breakfast…

I like to call this one "Hello, I'm 5"

A month or so ago, I randomly bought a can of this…

Whole Food's answer to Spaghetti O's.

As you all know, I am not a fan of microwaves…something about changing the molecular structure of our food just seems wrong to me. So, when ours broke two years ago, we never bothered getting it repaired. Well, then came the decision to put in new countertops and a backsplash, and we decided to go ahead and replace the microwave as well. This morning I used it to heat up my O’s and then toasted myself an Earthgrains Thin Bun with goat cheese. I have to admit this was delicious and brought back so many memories.

My one goal for today was to go on a walk, but not sure if that’s going to happen as I need to head back home and meet the plumber and electrician. So, I better get going. If you email me, it may be a while before I respond, but I promise to get back to you when I can.

Oh my God, I’m so sorry to hear of all those troubles. Hope life get’s back to normal soon! I think I’d go a little crazy if I lost my comp and internet–the trials and tribulations of being a blogger and a student

I hope your day gets better! I remember spilling a vente (hot) tea all over myself while on a date once. Luckily for me there was no computer to get damaged- only my pride and a small burn blister was all I walked away with.

Oh man, what a mess! I am a big fan of only ONE crazy thing going on at a time in my life (though does it happen that way? So rarely…). Sometimes stuff like Sketti Os (as I call em) are nice and comforting during those times. Hope things return to normal soon!

Oh no, I was wondering where you were…I hoped you were out for a fantastic lunch at a Mediterranean place so I could live virtually through you. I see that is not the case. I hope they get the data from your computer…that is hard to overcome. I will spare you the details, but Tony banned me from sauerkraut after I had it when I was pregnant. I actually craved it so badly. I made waffles with the boys today and thought of you. I hope your day gets better!

Oh goodness HEABie I hope you’re doing alright! That sounds like a nightmare day. When I have a day like that I schedule myself some crying time — crying it out usually makes things seem much more manageable for some reason. Good luck with everything and I’m sending lots of hugs!

Caronae, Plenty of tears shed this morning…and yes, sometimes, you just need a good cry. I happen to have my breakdown at the apple store, and I couldn’t have scheduled it a better time. They really cater to crying pregnant women.

I full on laughed at your naming of that meal, “hello i’m 5″ hahaha!! i’ve never seen spagetti hoops other than the sugary gloopy Heinz ones but seeing them in the pan like that, i’m ever so tempted so may have to take a look for a similar can in the shops! so sorry to hear about the coffee incident..onthe bright side, your mac wont be dehydrated! xx

So sorry to hear about the day you’ve had, but I’m so amazed at your awesome attitude about it all. One time my husband set my laptop up on my parents’ entertainment unit-when we were dating-and it crashed to the ground. hard. But, I couldn’t really complain because A.the screen broke but I could still use the actual computer hooked up to an old monitor, and B. he was just trying to make our LOST viewing better by hooking up my laptop to the TV. Bless his heart.

Heather, I’m so sorry you’re having such a rough day! Hang in there! My freshman year of college I ruined my laptop when I spilled a diet Coke on it during finals! It was a nightmare! I feel your stress!

Oh HEAB, sorry to hear about your day. Things can only get better, right?

I got an out of the blue craving for spaghetti-o’s and meatballs last week. I used to eat them ALL them time when I was a kid. Good to know there’s a healthier version available, I’ll have to check it out!!

Oh my goodness girl…what a day! I am so sorry but can I just say that you have a great attitude and I love how you are just rolling with it and accepting it as it comes. I would have been beside myself in tears!! Good for you for making lemonade our of some very sour lemons!!!

“hello..I’m 5″ I love that one! Looks like a breakfast of champs to me. I’m so sorry to hear about everything that’s happened. I’m pretty sure if I were in your shoes I’d be curled up in a corner somewhere. :/

Aw if it makes you feel better my mom spilled coffee all over her laptop a few years ago and all it took was some good hair-drying to bring it back to life! P.S. I LOVED spaghetti-os as a kid – how do the 365′s stack up nutritionally?

Jess, Not sure as the can is sitting out in my recycle bin, but I think the nutritional stats were about the same as far as calories, carbs, etc. goes. However, the list of ingredients for the 365 brand was a bit better…nothing artificial.

this is the strangest thing. . . my mom spilled coffee all over her mac laptop today too. Sadly the computer is destroyed and it was less than a year old. Luckily all the data was backed up. I’m sorry about your computer hopefully they can fix it.

Victoria, I had to get a new computer, but they were able to rescue most of my date…and I bought an external hard drive in case something like this ever happens again. I’d hate to lose all my photos and music! Glad to hear your mom’s data was backed up!

Dont you hate it that we rely so much on technology that it can totally throw you off your game! Can I just tell you, when I saw you hot dog post last week, I bought a bunch of whole grain buns, dogs, relish, kraut, the works and I’ve been eating them for lunch all week! I totally forgot how much I LOVE them and I’m def trying that eagle sauce. The applegate turkey dogs are sooo yummy! I’m trying to develop a healthy corn dog for my blog but I love those hotdogs with french fried onions and the grainiest mustard I can find!

If it makes you feel any better the last two weeks of my life have sounded like your today, only worse. and today took the cake, just when it looked like one teeny thing was about to start getting better, my hard drive completely failed out of no where, of course I am in the middle of trying to do my CPA exam and am way behind on the review course bc of everything else that happened the last two weeks, and of course all the review is stored in that computer so I will be two more days behind and I’ve lost all my saved data so that if I fail which is looking probable at this point I won’t be able to prove I finished everything and retake the course free. so hopefully you can feel a little better knowing that it could be so much worse.

Bummer!!!! But a new Mac is always a good thing!!
And I’m glad you’re getting the microwave back..I have a feeling with being pregnant and then having a baby you’ll probably be relieved to have something there that you can use to make your life a little easier. <3

I find it so hilarious that you had “Spaghetti Os” for breakfast. But you have to do what works. My first pregnancy I was on a big ravioli kick. They were like Chef Boyardee but different. I think I got the cans from Trader Joes?? Either way, they were heaven to me for some reason.

Hope your day gets better Heather! And I just have to chime in about the microwave issue…as a chemist I should dispel the myth that microwaves alter the molecular structure of food…this is physically impossible. Microwaves simply don’t have enough energy to do this. The simply add heat in the form of increasing water molecules’ vibrational energy. So the only molecular transformations that are possible are those that occur in any form of heating of food (i.e. denaturing of proteins or caramelizing of sugars)…Just fyi!

Good! That’s why I wanted to post the info…I definitely promote organic and minimal processing as much as most people on here (I’m an environmental chemist), but I think our society has become a little overly chemical-phobic. Yes, many things are wrong about the chemical industry and there are toxic things out there, but not every chemical and piece of technology is bad…everything is a chemical, really!

Averie, Hanging in there. Today WILL be a better today. Thanks for all the encouragement, and I think I love our new microwave. So much so, that I went out and bought a box of microwave popcorn from Costco. I’m a convert.

Allie, The Sad Mac – roger that. Will try to find online. Yep, remodeling. No gutting involved or anything – just some touch-ups. Email me if you ever need to vent – such a frustrating process at times! However, I know the work…and all the waiting will be worth it in the end.

A Teenage Gourmet, That’s what I’ve heard, but another commenter said that’s not true. Here was her comment: And I just have to chime in about the microwave issue as a chemist I should dispel the myth that microwaves alter the molecular structure of food this is physically impossible. Microwaves simply dont have enough energy to do this. The simply add heat in the form of increasing water molecules vibrational energy. So the only molecular transformations that are possible are those that occur in any form of heating of food (i.e. denaturing of proteins or caramelizing of sugars) Just fyi!

So sorry to hear all the issues you are going through with your house and computer. I hope everything gets worked out for you soon I hear you on spilling liquid on computers, we have had some really close calls, now we try to avoid drinks near our computers. Sometimes we forget though

New reader here – and a new mommy, too! I found that when I was pregnant, my palate totally flashed back to when I was 5. Grilled cheese, mac n’ cheese, cereal, fish sticks, chocolate pudding cups – you get the picture. Veggies finally made a comeback at around the 6th month. Your breakfast made me smile reminding me of all the grief co-workers would give me when I would crack open a can of (organic!) spaghettios for lunch!

Nora, Too funny, but so true. Yes, all I want is foods from my youth…even Pop-Tarts and sugary cereals, stuff I haven’t touched in years. The veggie lovin is on its way back…it’s the smell of them cooking that still gets to me. Hoping to get over that soon! Thanks for reading.